Sharpton has less to apologize for in the Duke case than the NBP crowd does, but it’s clear from the O’Reilly quotes that he defaulted to defending the accuser and was quick to label any of her critics as racists, even though she turned out to be wrong and her critics turned out to be right.

Caroline Dooley letter:For alums, inaction of profs and admins frustrating -- I have appreciated Professor James Coleman's efforts throughout the lacrosse case to focus attention on the procedural and ethical violations committed by the Durham district attorney and police, all of which raised the question of whether the state was playing fairly with the lacrosse team.

Unfortunately, there were few other voices of Duke professors that publicly expressed these concerns. On the other hand there were numerous surprising and disappointing statements made by Duke professors and instructors in letters to and articles in local papers and in their own publications. The University's administration did nothing to counter the impression that these statements were representative of the school itself.

The outrageous statements by professors often did not even seem to trigger any public criticism from fellow professors. There was, however, repeated complaints from professors and the Duke administration that "outsiders" and "bloggers" were unfairly sending them hate mail. If the administration saw fit to defend the professors from hateful anonymous e-mails one would assume it would also speak out against slanderous letters signed by Duke professors about the lacrosse team in public venues.

The actions of these outspoken professors (with the noted exception of Professor Coleman) and the inaction of most professors is the direct cause of the perception that Duke professors are uncaring toward their students. [...]

KC Johnson and Stuart Taylor letter:Coleman, Kasibhatla criticism is puzzling -- It puzzles us that professors James Coleman and Prasad Kasibhatla used the occasion of criticism directed toward President Richard Brodhead's apology to condemn our work on the lacrosse case-since the only one of us to comment publicly on the remarks (KC Johnson) praised the president for "a powerful and emotional address, one that touched on several important points in an impressive fashion."

It equally puzzles us that the duo attacked our characterization of the Coleman Committee report. One or both of us have given similar characterizations of the report, in print, no fewer than 23 times since May 2, 2006. Never did Professor Coleman (with whom we have spoken or e-mailed on multiple occasions) challenge our description, much less in the harsh tone employed in the Chronicle letter. Since our book directly quotes from the report's section dealing with the lacrosse players' alcohol-related arrests, it seems peculiar to suggest we overlooked this point. [...]

discussion;KC Johnson: Updates -- It's troubling to see Prof. [Kerry] Haynie, a tenured faculty member at one of the nation's leading universities, admit his closed-mindedness: he will not read his critics' work, nor will he respond to them, but he feels safe in publicly condemning them. [...]

LieStoppers blog:Call for Review of Duke's Faculty Response -- Professor KC Johnson and Stuart Taylor Jr, co-authors of Until Proven Innocent, have called for a review of the Faculty response in the Duke Lacrosse case. [...]

Editorial:Suit could bring welcome reforms -- With the arrival of the indicted lacrosse players' civil rights lawsuit in federal court, the plaintiffs may finally receive the justice they were denied. No less importantly, however, the lawsuit could ensure that those in future cases enjoy the full procedural justice to which they are entitled. [...]

Nate Freeman / Duke Chronicle:Three students robbed off East Campus -- As the three students walked through the parking lot of the grocery store-located just steps away from East Campus-at about 3 a.m., a man got out of a black Nissan Pathfinder holding a semiautomatic weapon, the students told police officers.

The students told police there was a second man in the car during the incident.

The man held the students at gunpoint and ordered them to hand over cash, credit cards, cell phones and an iPod before returning to the vehicle, which then sped down Broad Street.

comment: Well, just like the News & Observer the Duke Chronicle does not include any kind of description of the robber. Isn't that part of the "Who" part of journalism and basic reporting? What was he wearing, how tall was the robber, did he have an accent, hair and eye color, god forbid, but could the victims identify his race?

Oliver Bowers / The Brown Daily Herald:Seligmann '09 and other former Duke lacrosse players sue Nifong -- The lawsuit comes a month after lawyers for the families of the three men met with city officials seeking a $30 million settlement and several judicial system reforms. Among the reforms were the creation of an ombudsman committee to oversee police activities for 10 years and changes to the photo lineup that helped point the finger at the former defendants, according to the AP.

The players' attorneys gave the city a month to respond or face a civil rights lawsuit.

"This is not about money for the boys, though obviously they deserve compensation," Richard Emery, a civil rights attorney representing Seligmann, told the AP. "This is about sending a message to public officials who only get the message when they have to pay the money."

In 1989, a Wayne County jury convicted Dail, 38, of raping a 12-year-old girl two years before. He always swore his didn't do it and refused a plea deal which would have put him on probation for a misdemeanor offense.

Dail, 39, was freed in August after DNA extracted from a long-forgotten nightgown proved he was not the rapist.

The governor's pardon -- the fifth he's granted since taking office in 2001 -- clears the way for Dail to seek compensation for the years he paid for another man's crime. All told, Dail could collect $360,000 from the state.

"It's a pittance, to be frank, but I'm grateful to be a free man, so I won't whine," Dail said by phone from Florida Wednesday, minutes after his lawyer Chris Mumma called to share the news.

Mumma, director for the North Carolina Center for Actual Innocence, discovered the nightgown this summer after a evidence room clerk at the Goldsboro Police Department mentioned a retired officer might have saved some evidence from the case. [...]